1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to portable selective data capture and selective control devices providing an interface between a user and a controlled device and, more particularly, to arrangements for providing data or control input to devices such as a data processor, musical instrument, communication device or the like while allowing freedom of movement and minimal interference with other activities for a user.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most mechanical and electrical devices capable of multiple functions require and provide for user control for selection between those functions and initiation and termination of the function selected. In general, multiple buttons in the nature of a keypad or keyboard of arbitrary extent has been the arrangement of choice for communicating user selection and/or control to the device. In recent years, other arrangements such as pointing devices and voice-responsive systems have come into relatively widespread use. Further, some systems have provided for control and/or selection to be provided by collected data such as physiological information concerning the user. For example, eye movement or nervous system activity (e.g. EEG, EKG, blood pressure, electro-neural muscle activity and the like) can be monitored to develop signals which can be used in the same manner as key strokes for selection or control. However, alternative input arrangements have generally been implemented as stand-alone systems which are useable alone or as a supplement to keyboards in a mutually exclusive fashion.
However, keyboards are not generally well-adapted for long periods of operation by a human user and alternative arrangements such as those alluded to above generally involve some degree of inconvenience, slow response, substantial user training and accommodation and/or significant data processing resources. So-called ergonomic design features provide only marginal improvements in accommodating human use. Moreover, while some portable or wearable devices are known, they are generally dedicated to a single type of input to a single apparatus, such as the separate keyboard and mouse or other pointing arrangement of a personal computer. For example, an arrangement is known in which a rolling member such as is used in a mouse is mounted on the underside of a keyboard and pointing controlled by sliding the entire keyboard along a surface, compromising convenience of both pointing and data entry functions.
A notable exception is disclosed in the above-incorporated U.S. Pat. No. 6,097,374 granted to the inventor of the present invention. As disclosed therein, a small and lightweight housing is preferably worn on the wrist and includes a plurality of directional light-emitting devices. The housing supports a substantially linear array of directional light receptors extending generally parallel to the direction of light emission and received light substantially orthogonal thereto; thus providing a matrix of locations which can be monitored and distinguished from each other when a finger or other appendage is moved to any location in the matrix defined by the directional light emitters and receptors.
This arrangement also includes motion sensors in at least two directions for controlling a pointing device in response to hand motion (e.g. orientation, velocity and the like) for controlling a pointing arrangement or providing other input parameters such as volume or tempo to a musical instrument digital interface (MIDI) and, if desired, a microphone and associated circuitry for receiving voice or other audible signal input. All information developed by these arrangements is communicated to another device or base station such as a personal computer or musical instrument by a modulated light communication link much in the nature of a remote control arrangement for a television or other appliance.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide enhancements for the invention disclosed and claimed in the above-incorporated U.S. Pat. No. 6,097,379 in structure, information capture, function and adaptability to a greatly increased variety of applications.
It is another object of the invention to provide the function of the invention of U.S. Pat. No. 6,097,379 and additional functions with increased accommodation of other activities of a user.
In order to accomplish these and other objects of the invention, a system for providing an input signal to an apparatus over an electro-magnetic communication link is contemplated. The system has a base station including an electro-magnetic receiver. A housing is attachable to a body of an operator and a plurality of electro-magnetic signal transmitters are associated with the housing. A plurality of receptors are also associated with the housing and a mechanism is provided for supplying distinctive signals to each of the plurality of electro-magnetic transmitters such that reflected electro-magnetic signals can be distinguished when reflected from a body portion of the operator or another object. In addition, a mechanism is provided for modifying the distinctive signals responsive to a receptor of the plurality of signal receptors.